Bound by Fate
by KamiNoSakura
Summary: Mai is having problems with various members of SPR. What's going to happen when she finally stands up for herself? MaixLin
1. Bound by Fate Prologue: Sparks Flying

**Bound by Fate**

**Written By: **KamiNoSakura

**Author's Note:** This is a Ghost Hunt pairing of Lin and Mai, I'm doing this as both a request from **Heather Unscripted** and the fact that this is one of my favorite pairings in the series. This will be a fairly long story and will involve various paranormal cases, some of them being true, others being popular stories told either in Japan or around the world. Hope you all enjoy, and yes, there's a possibility that I'll be making a doujinshi out of this story. I do NOT own the Ghost Hunt series, all rights go to Shiho Inada and Fuyumi Ono.

Warnings: This contains violence, profanity and OC's.

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><p><strong>Prologue<strong>

** Sparks Flying**

It was a long day for Taniyama Mai, school took out more of her energy than usual. All her classes gave out tests and long homework assignments, her friends were nagging her about the cases she was or had been working on. Overall it was just exhausting. However, school was nothing compared to what she would have to face at work. There she stood outside of SPR, or Shibuya Psychic Research for short, and let out the biggest sigh ever to be heard. It wasn't the work she was dreading, it was her boss and co-worker that made her job a living hell. Shibuya Kazuya, the boss, also nicknamed Naru, was a young seventeen year old boy with the most narcissistic and overbearing person she has ever met. Even though Mai held feelings for Naru, she still found him to be a royal pain. However, she had a bigger problem with Koujo Lin, her co-worker. Ever since the day they met, Mai felt that Lin absolutely hated her. Sure, she was clumsy and nearly got herself killed had it not been for Lin rescuing her, which resulted in him being sent to the hospital for a few days. But come on! He's not the type to hold a grudge…is he? As Mai was continuing to dread about work, she let out another sigh and decided that it was best to get the day over with. With that she walked inside. The moment she arrived Naru demanded his daily afternoon tea.

"Mai, Tea!" She saw that one coming, rolling her eyes she made her way towards the kitchen and prepared tea for the almighty one. As she finished pouring the tea in three cups, she walked over to Lin's office door and knocked gently.

"Lin-san I made some tea, would you like a cup?" Lin responded with nothing but rapid typing that Mai heard from the other side of the door. She cracked open the door and saw that Lin was too preoccupied with work as usual and left the cup of tea on a counter beside the door. She closed the door, allowing Lin the peace and quiet atmosphere that he made for himself. This was another problem Mai had when it came to Lin. He hardly ever talks to anyone, the only person that can actually make him speak in a full sentence is Naru. Mai let out another sigh and carried Naru's tea to his office. She knocked and went inside when she heard Naru.

"Come in."

"Here's your tea Naru. Anything else?" She inquired, being bored when there were no cases to be solved, Mai had too much time on her hands at work.

"No, that's it. Hurry up and leave, I have work to do." Mai became irritated at the Naru's rudeness, but she let it slide, seeing as Naru was acting like his usual snobbish self. She left the office, closed the door and went to her desk. She then decided to take a shot at her homework that all her teachers gave her. She piled all of the assignments on top of one another and was shocked by the shear amount. It was like seeing a mountain of paper and books in one of those nightmares you would have about school. She let out another sigh and went to work.

"Well these aren't going to finish themselves, might as well get them out of the way until we get a case." She opened one of her books and began writing, the assignments were more or less simple a few of them stumped her but it didn't bother her all that much. Before she knew a few hours had passed, nearing the time to go home she finished up her last assignment, suddenly interrupted the unexpected appearance of some members of the SPR team.

"Yo Mai! How have you been?"

"Bou-san? What are you doing here, and Masako as well." Bou, also known as Takigawa Housho is a monk from Mount Koya. He is currently a spiritualist and bass player in his band. He's a tall young man who looks to be in his twenties, with somewhat long blonde hair. Beside him was Hara Masako, a renowned medium who has the ability to see and communicate with spirits of the dead. She's a short girl, who looked to be about Mai's age and is a bit spoiled.

"Wasting time as usual Mai? I can't believe that Naru actually hired and pays you to do absolutely nothing." Forgot to mention, Masako is a bit of a rival to Mai, actually it's the other way around. It's Masako who considers Mai a threat when it comes to her unrequited love for Naru.

"Put a sock in it will you Masako? I'm not having a good day and you being here isn't making things better." Offended, Masako snapped back at Mai.

"I don't remember ever trying to make things better for you."

"Well just leave. You might as well, the office is going to close in a few minutes."

"Unfortunately for you Mai, that isn't going to happen today." The three turned around to see Naru walking out of his office with some files at hand.

"What do you mean Naru? Did we get a case?"

"Yeah, I just got off the phone with our client, we're going there right now. Bou-san, can you drive us?"

"Sure, where to?"

"Osaka, it's going to take some time getting there so go home and gather whatever essentials you'll need. I have a feeling that we'll be there for quite some time. Hara-san will you accompany me?" Mai was shocked when Naru suddenly and politely asked Masako to go with him. She couldn't help but feel useless, at least that's how she felt in Naru's eyes.

"Naru, what am I going to do?" Naru looked towards Mai.

"You'll stay here with Lin and wait for me to tell you the equipment we'll be needing for this case." Mai now understood that although her psychic powers are similar to Masako's she was also an employee of SPR, and she had her own duties. She nodded in understanding. Naru left the group to talk to Lin, explaining the new case they received. Afterwards he left with Bou and Masako.

_'I guess I should call Ayako and John for some help, and maybe Yasu. No wait scratch Yasu, it's better to keep him away from the case until we know what we're dealing with. He's better at researching than Naru or Lin.'_ Mai then went towards the phone and called the self-styled priestess and the foreign Christian father.

Phone Conversation:

"Hello?"

"Ayako, it's Mai."

"Oh hey Mai, what's up? You rarely call me."

"Yeah I know, sorry about that. Actually I'm calling you about a new case we just received."

"Oh so does that mean Naru is finally going to acknowledge the fact that he needs me?"

"Ha ha ha, sorry but no, I just decided to call you. I'd figure we'd need your help in this case."

"Damn, and I thought he got off his high horse."

"Sorry, he hasn't changed. Well anyways I don't know the details of the case yet, all I know is that it's in Osaka."

"Osaka? That's going to take all night driving there! Doesn't he know that I need my beauty sleep?"

"Actually Ayako, I'm the one asking you. Naru didn't even mention you and John, but I thought I take the responsibility to ask you for help."

"Well look who's becoming her own boss. Good for you Mai, and since you've been growing up I'll call John and we'll meet you over there."

"Great, the address is…."

"Alright, see you there."

"Yeah I will, but me and Lin-san might be late. Naru wants us on standby until he knows which equipment we'll be needing for the case."

"Ok then, but you better find something to do. You should know that Lin never ever talks to his passengers."

"Tell me something I don't know…well anyways I'll see you later Ayako."

"Alright see you Mai, take care and good luck." Mai hung up and glanced at the door of Lin's office. Wondering what Lin was doing now that SPR had a new case. Before she knew it the door opened slowly and revealed Lin. He was very tall, lean and well built; in other words he was very handsome; his raven hair glistened and was well kept. Girls all over would be jealous if they weren't fawning and drooling over him. His bangs hung over his right eye, adding a bit of mystery to his handsome features. Lin noticed Mai staring at him and returned the action with an icy glare. Mai flinched and by reflex looked away to avoid the stare. She tried to break the ice by making small talk.

"Lin-san would you like some more tea?"

"No need, I'll just get some coffee." He made his way towards the kitchen. Mai intercepted him and ran in front, blocking the entrance of the kitchen.

"No Lin-san, it's my job to get the tea and help out around here."

"I told you that there was no need Mai, now please move." Mai became a bit irritated, but she refused to give in.

"Look Lin-san you have your job helping and guarding Naru and I respect that. I don't or won't do anything to interfere with your work, so I would appreciate it if you let me do mine." Lin became more impatient and was willing to force his way in.

"Move Mai."

"You sound just like Naru, do you know what I say to him when I disagree? N.O." With that comment, Lin grabbed Mai's arms, pushing her against the wall. He brought his face extremely close to her own. As Lin was about to speak Mai's cheeks turned into a brilliant red, realizing the proximity of the two. Lin also realized the distance between the two. He retreated before he did anything that he would inevitably regret. Both Mai and Lin couldn't look at each other, Mai was still blushing violently as ever and heart racing.

_'W-what's going on? Why am I so nervous?'_ She glanced back at Lin, unknown feelings welling up inside…sparks were flying….


	2. Chapter 1: Screw you Naru!

**Bound by Fate**

**Written By: **KamiNoSakura

**Author's Note:** This is a Ghost Hunt pairing of Lin and Mai, I'm doing this as both a request from **Heather Unscripted** and the fact that this is one of my favorite pairings in the series. This will be a fairly long story and will involve various paranormal cases, some of them being true, others being popular stories told either in Japan or around the world. Hope you all enjoy, and yes, there's a possibility that I'll be making a doujinshi out of this story. I do NOT own the Ghost Hunt series, all rights go to Shiho Inada and Fuyumi Ono.

Warnings: This contains violence, profanity and OC's.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

** Screw you Naru!**

Several minutes had passed since Mai and Lin had their extremely close (physical) contact with each other. Mai's heart was still racing and pounding against her chest, face heated and red as a tomato, mind processing a million things at once. In other words, Mai's panicking.

_'Ok Mai, calm down. It's nothing to worry about, it was just an accident. Don't panic, it doesn't matter that Lin-san is really good-looking, cool and-wait a minute why am I thinking about his looks!'_ She shook her head rapidly, expelling all of her previous thoughts about her co-worker. _'Get a grip Mai! Focus! Concentrate on the issue at hand.' _She turned to face Lin when she noticed that he was in the kitchen making his coffee. Then her brain began to register the events that occurred before their "close-call contact" as Mai called it. The two were arguing about Mai doing to her job and Lin wanting to make his own cup of coffee. Irritation soon conquered her mind. Two reasons for this: one being the fact that Lin is making the cup of coffee even knowing the fact that it was Mai's job. The second reason, it appeared to Mai that Lin didn't mind or rather, care about their little incident that happened after their argument.

Little did Mai know that their close contact with one another did in fact plague Lin's mind, he just didn't show it. As he continued to make his coffee his mind travelled back to their encounter with one another. He stared at the coffee machine as the memories of the last few minutes came flooding back.

_'Mai is so stubborn. I really don't understand how Naru can deal with someone like her. Sure she may be cute, but that doesn't mea-wait did I just think Mai was cute?'_ Shocked, he looked back to see how Mai was dealing with their sudden close kiss. He saw that her face was burning bright red, even with her facing in a different direction. Her embarrassment amused him a bit, as he walked silently into the kitchen and towards the coffee machine. His trip down memory lane ended when Mai confronted him about her job. 'Here we go again, back to square one.' He let out a sigh as he was ready to have another argument with his sixteen year old co-worker. To his surprise she didn't say anything. Instead she grabbed the coffee container as soon as the machine finished its job and poured the drink into two cups. One of them was mixed with three cubes of sugar and a spoonful of cream, while the other was left black. Mai gave the plain black coffee to the older man beside her as she drank from her sweet creamy mixture. Lin stared at the young girl before he grabbed the cup from her hand.

"I thought I was making the coffee."

"You were and you did. I just poured them into cups, which is another part of my job Lin-san." He decided not to argue back and have another repeat of their earlier debate. Instead he stood silently and drank the hot coffee. The silence and the much needed caffeine sent a wave of satisfaction through Lin's system. Although SPR didn't have any cases other than the one given today, Lin still had plenty of work to do. Organizing old case files, recording any new findings from the previous cases and reporting to Naru's parents about his progress in Japan. So much to do in so little time: that's Lin's life in a nutshell. Not that he would complain about it since he rarely has casual conversation with other members of SPR. Other than Naru that is.

As Mai continued to drink from her cup, she would occasionally glance at Lin. Still thinking about the (almost) kiss she felt her face burn with embarrassment.

_'Get a hold of yourself Mai! You're supposed to be in love with Naru not Lin-san! Even though Lin-san is much more handsome, nice (sort of…), and most importantly doesn't piss me off! Except during my dreams, Naru is actually nice, he smiles. I haven't seen Lin-san look happy at all. Not since we started working together…I guess it's because I'm here…' _Her thoughts were interrupted by the sudden ringing of Mai's cell phone. She jumped nearly spilling the contents of her cup. She raced towards her bag in search of the noisy contraption. Lin continued drinking his coffee as Mai rummaged through her belongings. After a scattering a few objects on to the ground, she finally managed to find her cell. She looked at the caller I.D. wondering who on earth was calling her. However, once she saw who the caller was she didn't answer the phone.

This didn't go unnoticed by Lin, he walked towards Mai. He saw that her face was brightened up like a light bulb. He'd never seen her so happy before and even he had to admit that she looked much cuter with a smile.

Mai then answered the phone before she missed the call. Loudly and happily she revealed who the mystery caller was.

"Onee-chan!" Lin's eyes widened considerably.

'_Mai had an older sister? Wasn't she an orphan? So then how is it she…'_ Lin walked towards Mai who was occupied with her phone. He tried to listen in on her conversation by sending one of his shiki to spy on the young teenage girl. The small spirit immediately went to work. It hovered above Mai and used its powers to memorize all the sound waves that was produced by the two females who were engaged with their conversation with one another. Although Lin sent one of his shiki to do the work, he decided to listen in himself, picking up any words that left Mai's lips.

Unaware of Lin's espionage activity, Mai continued with talking to her older sister.

"Nee-chan, it's rare for you to call me. What's up?"

"Ha ha ha sorry about that Mai, it's been pretty hectic at work. Anyways how are things at work?"

"Things are fine, actually I might after today I might not come home for a while. We just got a new case in Osaka and we don't know how long the case will be. And there's no need for you to apologize nee-chan. You're a doctor, saving lives, I know it's going to keep you busy for a while but I'm proud that my older sister is a hero. Do your best okay?"

"I will Mai, don't you worry. But hey I'm not the only one saving lives right? Your work involves helping other people right? Be sure to stay safe and keep up the good work. By the way, you still haven't told me what your job is? You've been pretty secretive about it lately."

'_Crap, I still haven't told nee-chan that I work with ghost hunters! Quick Mai think of something!'_

"Ah well, I work with, umm, detectives!" Silence polluted the air, both Lin and Mai were speechless in her last minute cover-up.

"You work with detectives?"

"Y-yeah I work with a detective agency. We receive cases and then solve them. Ha ha ha ha, pretty cool huh?"

"…"

"Nee-chan?"

"Mai, you should know better than to lie to me."

"L-lie? Who says I'm lying? Ha ha ha…hah. Sorry nee-chan, you're right, I've been lying to you."

"Why Mai?"

"Well, you see…" Tears began to dwell up in Mai's eyes. She loved her sister, lying to her felt so wrong. Before Mai had to explain herself Lin grabbed the cell from her hand.

"Pardon me, my name is Koujo Lin. Am I speaking with Mai's onee-san?"

"Hai, this is Taniyama Miyako. Are you Mai's boss?"

"No, I'm her co-worker. Shibuya Kazuya, our boss is currently out at the moment. If you would like to speak with him I can arrange a meeting. After our case is finished that is."

"That will be helpful, but about Mai's job description…"

"Please don't worry about it. Mai is the secretary for SPR."

"SPR?" Lin knew right then that Mai failed to tell her one-san anything about her part-time job. It's going to be a challenge to explain something such as ghost hunting to someone who probably has little to no knowledge of spiritualism. He would normally become irritated by Mai's irresponsibility to tell her own family about what she had been doing during her spare time. But he wasn't. He understood that Mai didn't have her parents around to protect and guide her, she had to rely on other people. Teachers, friends, and now her sister, he could not blame her for being secretive about her job which is fairly dangerous. He remembered that about every case that SPR has been on with Mai, she is usually the one to get hurt at one point. If anyone in her family were to find out, there's no question that they would try to convince her to quit or be extremely careful and cautious, maybe even shun her. Considering not too many people believe in ghosts and spirits, Yasuhara's school demonstrated that fact perfectly.

"Yes, well regarding Mai's job either Shibuya-san or myself will be explaining in greater detail with. We'll be sure to contact you as soon as we're done with our new case, I hope that is acceptable with you." Mai was slightly surprised. First of all Lin had called Naru by his real name. Second was his sudden act of kindness. Why did he save her from having to explain to her sister that she was a part of ghost hunters. On top of that, he added more work for himself. Mai, continued to be perplexed by her co-worker's strange behavior did not notice that Lin ended the conversation with her onee-san.

The older man stared at his younger co-worker after his little talk with her onee-san. Mai was closed her eyes, her brows furrowed together, hand to the tip of her chin. All signs of Mai's particular habits of when she's thinking deeply about something. Lin wasn't sure if he should bring her back to reality or just let her continue thinking about whatever. When he decided to interrupt Mai he saw her turning as red as a tomato. This wasn't the first time Lin has seen her blush but he couldn't help but become curious.

'_What on earth is she blushing for?'_ As he took a step towards her, he also noticed that she was talking to herself. Actually it was more of a mumble, but it was loud enough for Lin to hear her say his name. His eyes widened as Mai blushed harder than she had ever done before. She stared at the floor as burning sensation continued to spread on her face. Lin's heart skipped a beat.

'_What is going on? Why is she blushing after she said my name? Also doesn't she love Naru?'_ As his confusion invaded his thoughts he took a quick glance at the girl in question and saw something that he never imagined. Mai was still blushing but in a lighter shade of pink that complemented her face so well. She smiled sweetly as her lips moved to form inaudible words. He couldn't quite make out what she said but his heart fluttered at the beautiful sight. He also saw her batting her head silly as her embarrassment and thoughts were driving her mad. Although he did not know what Mai was thinking about, but he could not help but be amused by the younger girl's antics. It was cute in his opinion.

Without realizing Lin was watching her, Mai realized after her co-worker saved her from her sister that she may be developing feelings for the older man.

'_Ok Mai, admit that he's handsome and occasionally has his nice moments but you barely know that guy! Besides it's Naru who I love…right?'_ She glanced back at Lin who was still conversing with Miyako, her heart was beating heavily in her chest. Almost as if it were going to jump out at a moment's notice. She thought of the few times she and Lin had together, although few they were still very precious. Her cheeks turned to a rosy red color as she continued to think about Lin. _'I guess I am starting to fall for him…but what does he think of me? There's no way he would feel the same way about me. I'm sure there are plenty of other women who jump at the chance to be Lin's girlfriend. Madoka-san in particular, from what I can tell she and Lin-san were acquaintances long before any of us from SPR met him.'_

Mai let out an exasperated sigh._ 'Madoka-san is more knowledgeable in spirits and ghost hunting, on top of that her personality and looks make her a better match for Lin-san. But then again, we had a few cases where we became closer.' _This brought her hopes up, and she remembered how Lin had saved her the first time they met. Like a knight in shining armor coming to save the damsel in distress. She began beating herself up for thinking of such silly thoughts as she became beat red.

'_Well at least I get to go home and let this out of my system. This way I won't be able to see Lin-san until Naru asks for us.'_ She sighed in relief. She turned to leave when she suddenly bumped into something, which turned out to be someone.

"L-Lin-san! I'm sorry about that, I wasn't looking where I was going."

"It's alright Mai, are you hurt?"

"No I'm fine."

"Are you going out somewhere?"

"Uh, yeah I was going to go home for the day. Is there anything you need before I leave?"

"No, go home and get some rest. You're probably going to need it for this new case. Also regarding Miyako-san…"

"Nee-san?"

"Yes, either me or Naru will be explaining your job situation to her. Hopefully she'll take it well, but be prepared for the worst."

"The worst?"

"Well if your one-san doesn't take the news of you being a spiritualist well then there might be a chance that she'll ask you to quit."

"Oh that's a good point…well thanks for the warning, I have a feeling that I'll know what to do when the time is right. Anyways it's time for me to go home, I'll see you in the morning Lin-san."

"Alright, see you tomorrow Mai." As Mai was taking her leave the office phone suddenly began to ring. Mai quickly answered, wondering who would call at such an hour.

Phone Conversation:

"Hello this is Shibuya Psychic Research, how may I help you?"

"Mai."

"Huh? Naru is that you?"

"Who else would it be? Sometimes I wonder how that brain of yours works, assuming you had one."

"Shut up!"

"Back to business…Mai don't leave the office tonight."

"Why?"

"After a few more tests around the mansion and I'll be able to figure out which pieces of equipment we'll be needing. I don't want you to leave for home only to return to the office. It's too much trouble. So stay over at the office until further instructions."

"B-but Naru-"

"No buts Mai, or did you forget that I'm the boss and that you're working for me?"

"…no."

"Good well then let Lin know and I'll call back soon."

"Alright…" Mai placed the phone down on the desk. She turned to face Lin who was in the room to wait for Naru's orders. "Well it seems that I'll be staying the night." One of Lin's brows went up, showing his surprise to the sudden news.

"Why, I though you going home."

"I was originally but Naru wants me to stay. He said that he'll let us know which tools we'll be needing for the case soon and that it would be too much of a hassle for me to go home only to just return to the office." Lin only nodded in response. He walked to a closet that Mai hasn't noticed before. "What' in there Lin-san?"

"Blankets and pillows." Lin said flatly.

"Really? Why are you getting those out?" Lin didn't say anything, he just simply looked at the young girl and returned to rummaging through the closet.

"Here." Lin handed Mai a blanket and a pillow.

"Wait, what are these for?"

"Well this isn't the first time where Naru wanted his employees to stay in the office until he knows what we're up against. So we have these blankets and pillows just in case such an occasion occurs. Besides it get pretty cold in the office." Mai was speechless. She didn't think that Lin would be so considerate of her. Her heart began to flutter a bit at the kind gesture.

"Thank you Lin-san." She smiled brightly as she showed her gratitude to the older man. His heart skipped a beat once again at the sight. He turned around, having his back facing towards Mai. Hiding his own smile.

"Well I'm going back to work, if you need anything else just let me know. Good night Mai, sleep well."

"Alright thank you again Lin-san. Goode night." Lin left for his office as Mai settled on one of the couches. She tried to sleep as the thoughts of the day's events swarmed her mind. She found it difficult to sleep. One of the reasons why she couldn't sleep was because she was under the same roof at Lin. Although Lin was in his office, it was still nerve-racking especially since she found out her new feelings for the handsome man. But what really kept her awake was her conversation with Naru.

_ 'Stupid Naru! Just because he's the boss doesn't mean he can dictate my life. That jerk! Not only that it's so awkward sleeping in the office when Lin-san is in the other room! My life is going crazy right now, I blame you Naru! Wait there's a better way of saying this…Screw you Naru!' _


End file.
